I'm still learning lots as I go along but I feel I'm making some headway. The infantryman seems about there as a template for the proportions and style of painting the peg 'body'. But, I still have a little way to go with my cavalryman. Still not 100% sure about the way I model the rider's legs.
Another concern is that I'm still using aerosol spray lacquer (Wilko's brand rattlecan) and this is very wasteful. Spray-on gloss does give a lovely even coat, but it's very indiscriminate and despite the fact I use a small spray both (with extractor fan) I can fell the stickiness of the varnish on my skin when I'm done. I'm guessing about 40% or maybe even more of the varnish doesn't go on the model at all!
I've ordered a can of paint-on varnish and will knock up yet another prototype this week to test this brush on varnishing technique - will it pool and drip?
(Will have to think about getting a little display cabinet soon as my collection of peg figures is growing rapidly!)
Those look awesome! The shiny finish really works for them. I know you are concerned with the legs of the cavalryman, but I bet only you see it. When people look at them for the first time, they are seeing the things about the figure that are archetypal, like the helmet in the case of these figures and, because we are human beings, we tend to look at the faces, which are more than just a little charming. These things are going to hold people's gaze, so I wouldn't worry about the legs. Plus, you've already sort of got the flatter looking limbs as a part of the style of these figures (like the infantryman's arms) so I think the legs on the cavalry figure totally make sense and fit with the Gestalt of your figures.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it liberating to paint a flat surface and to be able to do with it what you want, instead of what the sculptor wants you to do?
Cheers! Actually, your words made a lot of sense and I actually feel a bit better today about the 'flat legs'. I feel I'm getting somewhere with these figures. :)
DeleteThe coolest thing about these crafted figures in my opinion is that they are unique. No one else has these figures, and even if someone uses your same construction ideas, they will not be painted in the same way and will still have a unique appearance. I think that is a very great thing about hand-made miniatures. I did a game several years ago with John Acar at our Cold Wars convention for historical miniature gaming here in the states, and I did the Roman side and he did the Carthaginians (not sure how I let him get away with that, the Romans are pretty boring looking and the Carthaginians are so cool and diverse in appearance, plus they have elephants!). We were using the same construction methods, but his painting style is much more meticulous and exact than mine, so the figures looked quite different from each other even though we were using the same spools, pegs, etc. to make them.
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